The following disclosure relates to data processing and more particularly to project and process development.
Project development systems allow a user to, e.g., develop and manage a project. These systems support various types of projects including marketing projects, design projects, manufacturing projects, consulting projects, development projects, and any combination thereof. Project development systems can include project development applications that run on computing devices for managing one or more projects.
Project development systems often use a project structure to describe a given project. In general, a project structure maps real-world aspects of a project, such as timelines and tasks, into an electronically accessible format. For example, many project development systems describe a start, finish, and other schedule dates of a project, the tasks that are performed and the results that are achieved during the project, and the data objects that are generated by the project or used to complete the project.
A Gantt Chart is an example of a project structure that can be used to describe a given project. A Gantt Chart is a graphical representation that shows the time dependency of several tasks of a project within a calendar. A Gantt Chart provides a graphical illustration of a schedule that helps to plan, coordinate, and track specific tasks in a project.
FIG. 1 shows an example Gantt Chart 100. The Gantt Chart 100 includes a calendar 102 constructed with a horizontal axis 104 and a vertical axis 106. The horizontal axis 104 represents the total time span of the project. The time span of the project can be broken down into divisions (or increments), e.g., days, weeks, or months. The vertical axis 106 represents the tasks associated with the project. Horizontal bars 108 of varying lengths represent the sequences, timing, and duration for each task. The horizontal bars 108 can be connected with arrows 110 that represent relationships or dependencies between tasks. A table (or hierarchy diagram) 112 can be displayed next to the Gantt Chart that contains additional information about the tasks.